The Oklahoma City Thunder are now less than one week away from ushering in training camp.
The Thunder head into the 2026-27 season with designs of winning a second NBA title in three seasons.
While winning another title requires a months-long grind, it’s difficult to count out Sam Presti and the roster at this stage.
Read more on how Oklahoma City succeeded in the goals that came about when the offseason began below.
Thunder Offseason is Largely Successful
Oklahoma City went into the offseason facing a true inflection point. This crucial moment rested in reflecting on what went wrong in the playoff series loss to the San Antonio Spurs. It also created questions about how the front office would navigate the modern-day NBA CBA.
It turns out that Presti and the Thunder did an admirable job of tackling the latter of the two.
Oklahoma City is now completely avoidant of the NBA’s “second apron” after trading away Isaiah Joe, Luguentz Dort, and Aaron Wiggins. During this process, they also acquired seven second-round selections – validating that these losses weren’t in vain. By virtue of making these trades, the Thunder are showing a great deal of faith in Cason Wallace, Ajay Mitchell, and Jared McCain to continue making strides forward
Beyond the trades that netted draft picks is the three-year contract that brings Isaiah Hartenstein back into the fold. This allows for 2026 lottery pick Aday Mara, as well as 2025 #15 overall pick Thomas Sorber, to wait in the wings and develop while Hartenstein leads the charge for a contender.
All of this in consideration nets the Thunder an offseason grade of ‘B+’ according to Grant Hughes (Bleacher Report).
Oklahoma City Building Around Core Correctly
The point that Hughes makes about the Thunder being able to shed three key rotation players while remaining contenders in as seamless of a form as possible is an extremely stout point.
Oklahoma City rosters one of the best duos in the league (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams). Chet Holmgren has the makings of a “generational” defender that can win Defensive Player of the Year awards.
Beyond the “core three” is a tale of what drafting exceptionally well and focusing on internal development does for an organization.
Mitchell, McCain, and Wallace are all cost-effective guards that compliment the big three well in different facets. While there’s a chance that one eventually departs, the Thunder would receive a hefty package to part with any of the trio. Forward Jaylin Williams joins the under-25 trio as a do-it-all piece that is still improving to this day.
In accompaniment of these players are veterans Alex Caruso and Kenrich Williams. Both players are over 30 and bring a bevy of experience/physicality to the table.
To cap everything off, prospects such as Sorber, Mara, Bennett Stirtz, and Nikola Topic all possesses various degrees of promise in their own right.
The Thunder are simply a case study on how to run an organization well. This will likely keep the franchise in contention long past the upcoming 2026-27 campaign.
Thunder Masterfully Navigate NBA Rules While Keeping Core Intact This Offseason